Only 8% of speed cameras in Derbyshire are operational

Just eight per cent of fixed speed cameras on Derbyshire’s roads are operational, according to new data.

Figures obtained from Derbyshire Constabulary by the Press Association reveal only 10 out of 112 are recording drivers at any one time.

A spokesman for the force said: "We have many ways of monitoring the speed of vehicles on our roads, such as the mobile CREST van, our roads policing patrols and community speed watch groups.

"We also move the recording devices inside the yellow camera casings to different fixed position cameras around the county, so the cameras in use this week may be different to the cameras in use next week.

"Moving them isn’t a way for us to increase revenue; we don’t receive money from the cameras anyway. But changing their locations does allow us to monitor roads across the county where there is a speeding problem, whether that’s a new risk or a known hotspot.

"The simple fact is that speeding is against the law. Whether there is a camera there or not and whether it is in operation or not, drivers need to obey the rules of the road."

Across the border, Nottinghamshire Police said every speed camera there is operational.

Overall, just half of fixed speed cameras in the UK are active.

Jason Wakeford, director of campaigns for road safety charity Brake, said: "A staggering 1,800 people lost their lives on British roads last year and speeding is a factor in thousands of crashes.

"Speed cameras are a proven cost-effective way of reducing collisions and so it's critical that they are operational."

Edmund King, president of the AA, claimed the high number of inactive cameras was down to budget cuts.

He said: "Many of the empty yellow cases are due to cuts in road safety grants and the fact that digital cameras, although more effective, are very expensive.

"Drivers who play Russian roulette with fixed-site cameras are playing a dangerous game.

"Our advice is stick to the limits rather than gambling on the yellow boxes."

A spokesman for the National Police Chiefs' Council said that the decision to use cameras was 'an operational matter' adding that 'all forces have individual responsibility for their use of speed cameras'.

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